VTQ Late results: guide to the submissions process
Published 14 November 2023
Applies to England
© Crown copyright 2023
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/vtq-late-results-guide-to-the-submissions-process/vtq-late-results-guide-to-the-submissions-process
Introduction
In order to fulfil our regulatory and accreditation functions as set out in the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009, we require awarding organisations to provide exams delivery data for regulated qualifications.
What data will be collected?
We seek to obtain candidate-level information into the causes of results not being issued, the issuing of delayed and inaccurate level 3 Vocational and Technical qualification results to learners in August 2023 in scope for the Action Plan.
The data should include one record per each student, per each qualification grade:
- Not issued by results day (17 August 2023)
- Expected to be issued but either deferred, pending or withdrawn
- Issued by results day but inaccurately
Data for results issued on-time and that were correct should not be included in this data return. This data collection does not seek to collect data on BAU reviews, such as review of marking, that would also happen in a normal year.
It should be noted that data for England only should be reported.
When will data be collected?
Data will be collected according to the vocational and technical qualifications reporting schedule which is agreed and maintained by Ofqual’s data services team.
How to submit your data
Your data should be submitted to us in CSV format. Please refer to the ‘Connecting to Ofqual’s data portal and uploading data’ document on our webpage to help you submit your files to us. If you need to ask us about a data submission please do contact the Data Services team by emailing data.services@ofqual.gov.uk, please do not send your data files via email to Data Services or to any other Ofqual email address, or via Contact the Regulator in the Portal.
Uploaded data
Once files have been successfully uploaded, the data will be validated against a set of validation rules. These are detailed in the sections below. If validation is successful, the data is automatically transferred into our systems and you will receive email confirmation. If the file is unsuccessful at any stage of validation you will receive an email with details of the validation failure. Please correct your file and resubmit it.
Amendments to data
Ofqual staff will not alter data once it has been submitted. If you find an error or omission after you’ve had a successful upload, please notify us by email and we will make arrangements for you to upload a new file.
How your data will be used
This data will be used to undertake our regulatory activities and, where required, to produce statistical publications to fulfil our responsibility as a government department. This data may be used analysed in conjunction with data already available to Ofqual, such as the results issued in these qualifications and already provided by AOs or further contextual data available to Ofqual.
File format
The file must be CSV format and the first row must be headers as displayed in the ‘Name’ column of the table below. The subsequent rows must have the values of the data to be reported which must match the format and validation rules below.
| Name | Description | Position | Validation Regular Expression | Description of Regular Expression |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ReportingDate | Date the file was due to be submitted to Ofqual regardless of when it was actually uploaded (this date will be made available by Ofqual). | 1 | ^(20)\d\d[-](0[1-9]|1[012])[-](0[1-9]|[12][0-9]|3[01])$ |
The date in the following format: year (4 digits), a dash, month (2 digits), a dash, day (2 digits) |
| AcademicYear | The academic year which this data submission relates to (defined as 1 September to 31 August). For example, “2022-2023”. | 2 | ^(20)\d\d[-](20)\d\d $ |
The academic year in the following format: start year (4 digits), a dash, end year (4 digits) Format accepted yyyy-yyyy |
| AwardingOrganisation | Name of the awarding organisation | 3 | ^.{1,100}$ |
1 to 100 characters accepted |
| QualificationNumber | This should be the unique identifier for the final qualification awarded as it appears in Ofqual’s Register of Regulated qualifications, for example, 123/1234/1. | 4 | ^.{1,10}$ |
Valid Qualification Number. 1 to 10 characters accepted. |
| UniqueLearnerNumber | Unique Learner Number (ESFA code) provided by the Learning Records Service.[footnote 1] Please provide this identifier wherever possible -2 accepted where the learner does not have a ULN |
5 | ^\d{1,10}$ |
1 to 10 digits accepted -2 accepted where the candidate does not have a ULN |
| UniqueCandidateIdentifier | Unique Candidate Identifier (JCQ code), assigned to the candidate.[footnote 1] -2 accepted where the learner does not have a UCI |
6 | ^.{1,13}$ |
A valid UCI. Alpha numeric 13 characters accepted -2 accepted where the candidate does not have a UCI |
| CandidateIdentifierOther | Any other unique candidate number allocated by individual awarding organisation. Must be provided where neither UCI or ULN are available[footnote 1] -2 accepted where at least one of UCI or ULN have been provided |
7 | ^.{1,20}$ |
1 to 20 characters accepted -2 permitted where at least one of UCI or ULN have been provided |
| FirstName | Candidate’s forenames | 8 | ^.{1,150}$ |
1 to 150 characters accepted |
| MiddleNames | Candidate’s middle name(s), if able to separate out from first names. Can be left blank if not known or unavailable, or if middle names cannot be separated from first names. |
9 | ^.{0,150}$ |
0 to 150 characters accepted |
| Surname | Candidate’s surname or family name | 10 | ^.{1,150}$ |
1 to 150 characters accepted |
| DOB | Candidate’s date of birth | 11 | ^(19|20|29)\d\d[- ](0[1-9]|1[012])[- ](0[1-9]|[12][0- 9]|3[01])$ |
Date in the following format: year (4 digits), a dash, month (2 digits), a dash, day (2 digits) 2999-12-31 accepted if DOB unknown |
| Gender | Candidate’s gender Accepted values: M F -2 accepted for other or not stated |
12 | ^(M|F|-2)$ |
Accepted values: M, F -2 accepted for other/unknown |
| CentreURN | Centre’s Unique Reference Number as assigned by the Department for Education at the time of data submission. -2 accepted where the centre does not have an URN[footnote 2] |
13 | ^\d{1,6}$ |
Valid Centre URN. Up to 6-digit integer accepted -2 also accepted where centre does not have a URN |
| CentreNCN | Centre’s National Centre Number as allocated by the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) at the time of data submission.[footnote 2] -2 accepted where the centre does not have an NCN |
14 | ^\d{1,5}$ |
Valid NCN code. Up to 5-digit integer accepted -2 also accepted where centre does not have a NCN |
| CentreIdentifierOther | Any other number allocated to the centre or assessment venue by individual awarding organisations at the time of data submission. Must be provided if neither CentreURN nor CentreNCN are available.[footnote 2] -2 permitted where at least one of NCN or URN have been provided or for candidates who are not registered to a centre |
15 | ^.{1,15}$ |
1 to 15 characters accepted -2 permitted where at least one of NCN or URN have been provided or for candidates who are not registered to a centre |
| Postcode | Postcode of centre | 16 | ^.{1,10}$ |
1 to 10 characters accepted -2 accepted for unknown |
| Centre_name | Name of centre | 17 | ^.{1,150}$ |
1 to 150 characters accepted -2 accepted for unknown |
| Country | Country where the centre is located. | 18 | ^(England)$ |
Accepted values: England |
| RegistrationDate | Date when the candidate originally registered/entered for the qualification. This date must be on or before the award date. |
19 | ^(20)\d\d[-](0[1-9]|1[012])[-](0[1-9]|[12][0-9]|3[01])$ |
The date in the following format: year (4 digits), a dash, month (2 digits), a dash, day (2 digits) |
| QualificationClaimDate | Date when the candidate (or the centre on their behalf) claimed the qualification. In some cases this is known as certification entry. When multiple qualification claims are available, please only report the date of the latest claim. The cut-off for reporting a late 2023 certification is 21 September. 2999-12-31 permitted only when qualifications do not require a claim for being issued. |
20 | ^(20)\d\d[-](0[1-9]|1[012])[-](0[1-9]|[12][0-9]|3[01])$ |
The date in the following format: year (4 digits), a dash, month (2 digits), a dash, day (2 digits) |
| Reason | Whether the grade was delayed (issued after results days) or issued incorrect or expected but not issued (because either deferred or withdrawn). | 21 | ^(Delayed|Incorrect|Expected)$ |
Accepted values: - Delayed - Incorrect - Expected |
| AwardDate_first | The date that the first result was issued to the centre (or candidate if result issued directly to candidate) Future dates are not accepted |
22 | ^(20)\d\d[-](0[1-9]|1[012])[-](0[1-9]|[12][0-9]|3[01])$ |
- The date in the following format: year (4 digits), a dash, month (2 digits), a dash, day (2 digits) |
| QualificationGrade_first | First grade for the qualification, including fail | 23 | See Annex A |
See Annex A for accepted grades |
| AwardDate_last | The date that the last result was issued to the centre (or candidate if result issued directly to candidate) Future dates are not accepted 2999-12-31 accepted where subsequent grade was not issued |
24 | ^(20)\d\d[-](0[1-9]|1[012])[-](0[1-9]|[12][0-9]|3[01])$ |
The date in the following format: year (4 digits), a dash, month (2 digits), a dash, day (2 digits) |
| QualificationGrade_last | Last grade for the qualification, including fail -2 accepted where only one grade was issued |
25 | See Annex A |
See Annex A for accepted grades |
| Reason2023 | Whether the reason for the not issuing of results, delays or incorrect results being issued was due to the specific circumstances and assessment arrangements for 2023 | 26 | ^(Yes|No)$ |
Accepted values: - Yes - No |
| ReasonExtended_1 | Reason why the grade was not issued, delayed or incorrect | 27 | See Annex B |
Accepted values: - N1 - N2 - N3 - N4 - L1 - L2 - L3 - L4 - L5 - L6 - L7 - L8 - L9 - L10 -L11 - P1 - P2 - I1 - I2 - I3 - I4 See Annex B |
| ReasonExtended_2 | Reason why the grade was not issued, delayed or incorrect -2 accepted if only one reason applied |
28 | See Annex B |
Accepted values: - N1 - N2 - N3 - N4 - L1 - L2 - L3 - L4 - L5 - L6 - L7 - L8 - L9 - L10 - L11 - P1 - P2 - I1 - I2 - I3 - I4 See Annex B |
| ReasonExtended_3 | Reason why the grade was not issued, delayed or incorrect -2 accepted if fewer than 3 reasons applied |
29 | See Annex B |
Accepted values: - N1 - N2 - N3 - N4 - L1 - L2 - L3 - L4 - L5 - L6 - L7 - L8 - L9 L10 - L11 - P1 P2 - I1 -I2 -I3 - I4 See Annex B |
| ReasonExtended_4 | Reason why the grade was not issued, delayed or incorrect -2 accepted if fewer than 4 reasons applied |
30 | See Annex B |
Accepted values: - N1 - N2 - N3 - N4 - L1 - L2 - L3 - L4 - L5 - L6 - L7 - L8 - L9 - L10 - L11 - P1 - P2 - I1 - I2 - I3 - I4 See Annex B |
Annex A – Accepted Grade Values
The following are grades accepted for this collection. Please let us know via the Portal as soon as possible if any grades appear to be missing from this list. You will not be able to submit any grades which are not on this list without informing us first.
- FAIL,
- -2, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9,
-
*, A*, A, B, C, D*, D, E, F, G, J, K, M, N, P, Q, U, X,
- AC1, C1, E1, E2, E3,
- D1, D2, D3, D4, D5, D6, M1, M2, M3, P1, P2, P3,
-
**, *1, *2, *D, D*D*, D*D, DD, DM, HM, HP, MD, MM, MP, PM, PP,
-
***, **D, *DD,D*D*D, D*D*D*, D*DD, DD*, DD*D, DDD, DD*, DDM, DMM, MDD, MMD, MMM, MMP, MPP, PMM, PPM, PPP,
- 24B, 25B, 26B, 27B, 28B, 29B, 30B, 31B, 32B, 33B, 34B, 35B, 36B, 37B, 38B, 39B, 40B, 41B, 42B, 43B, 44B, 45B,
- 24D, 25D, 26D, 27D, 28D, 29D, 30D, 31D, 32D, 33D, 34D, 35D, 36D, 37D, 38D, 39D, 40D, 41D, 42D, 43D, 44D, 45D,
- 24F, 25F, 26F, 27F, 28F, 29F, 30F, 31F, 32F, 33F, 34F, 35F, 36F, 37F, 38F, 39F, 40F, 41F, 42F, 43F, 44F, 45F,
If you have any of the following grades please convert them to the allowed values listed
| Grade | Allowed Value | Grade | Allowed Value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Distinction | D | L1 Credit | C1 | |
| High Merit | HM | L2D* | *2 | |
| Merit | M | Distinction* L2 | *2 | |
| High Pass | HP | L2 Distinction* | *2 | |
| Pass | P | L2D | D2 | |
| L1D* | *1 | Distinction L2 | D2 | |
| L1 Distinction* | *1 | L2 Distinction | D2 | |
| Distinction L1 | D1 | L2M | M2 | |
| L1 Distinction | D1 | Merit L2 | M2 | |
| L1D | D1 | L2 Merit | M2 | |
| Merit L1 | M1 | L2P | P2 | |
| L1 Merit | M1 | Pass L2 | P2 | |
| L1M | M1 | L2 Pass | P2 | |
| Pass L1 | P1 | Entry 1 | E1 | |
| L1 Pass | P1 | Entry 2 | E2 | |
| L1P | P1 | Entry 3 | E3 | |
| L1 Adv. Credit | AC1 | Unclassified | U | |
| Queried/pending | Q |
Annex B – Reason why the grade was delayed or incorrect
Result expected but not issued due to:
- N1: centre deferred or confirmed its intention not to claim/cash in certification for student due to incomplete assessment evidence. (For example, the student has failed to compete sufficient assessment evidence to certificate)
- N2: Centre has withdrawn student from the qualification (for example, student has changed courses or left centre)
- N3: AO deferred or did not certificate the student due to centre not claiming (For example, the centre did not respond to AO requests for student status to be confirmed)
- N4: AO deferred or did not certificate student due to incomplete assessment evidence. The student has failed to compete sufficient assessment evidence to certificate, and the centre did not confirm the student status
Result issued late due to:
- L1: late centre claim (ie requests for qualification result submitted on or after student results day)
- L2: student entered very late by centre
- L3: late change in course/GLH (eg top-up, drop down). Please use final qualification claimed in earlier cells
- L4: Outstanding malpractice/maladministration investigation. Result set to pending until investigation complete
- L5: AO has been unable to complete moderation/verification in time, due to the centre failing to respond to sample requests or accommodate moderation visits, following AO escalation and physical visit to the centre.
- L6: Marking/moderation is not completed on time- AO has been unable to complete marking in time, due to examiner shortage or marking quality issues.
- L7: Special Consideration- the centre has made a very late special consideration request, despite published deadlines. AO does not want to disadvantage learner and will process special consideration, but this leads to a delay in result being issued.
- L8: Missing script- the candidate has sat the assessment however the awarding organisation has been unable to locate and mark part, or all, of the script but is still investigating the missing script/assessment
- L9: Entry error by the centre- the centre has made an incorrect entry for the wrong component, or an entry hasn’t been made for the student.
- L10: Centre missing deadlines for BAU activity, claims, NEA mark submission NOT INCLUDING INDUSTRIAL ACTION
- L11: Centre missing deadlines for BAU activity, claims, NEA mark submission due to industrial action within centre
- P1: Result processing error - AO has system error, IT outage or transcription error meaning result cannot be processed
- P2: Results not delivered on time- AO results transfer process fails due to system or human error
Result issued is inaccurate due to:
- I1: Incorrect unit result contributing to overall aggregation error (eg, a Pass rather than a Merit awarded for a Unit leading to overall incorrect grade
- I2: Selecting the wrong unit result to use towards aggregation (eg, where a learner has more than one result for a unit, and the wrong one was used towards aggregation)
- I3: AO system or processing error
- I4: Centre error for example, entering incorrect NEA marks, error not identified during moderation
Contacts
For all queries relating to the data collection process, amendments to data previously provided, or for general guidance. please contact:
Data services
Ofqual
2nd floor, 1 Friargate
Station Square
Coventry
CV1 2GN
-
To allow us to identify the learner please provide at least one of UniqueLearnerNumber, UniqueCandidateIdentifier, or CandidateIdentifierOther. If more than one is collected, please provide as many as are available. ↩ ↩2 ↩3
-
To allow us to identify the centre please provide at least one of CentreNCN, CentreURN or CentreIdentifierOther. If more than one is collected, please provide as many as are available. ↩ ↩2 ↩3